Recently in Bike Category
In case you haven't noticed, fixed and single-speed bikes are definitely in vogue at the moment. And there were hundreds on show at Cycle 2008, with almost every manufacturer featuring a couple of fixies and plenty of fixed-speed frames, wheels and conversion kits available for those wanting to move from the comfort zone of their multi-speed bikes.
Not all of fixies looked as beautiful as the Rapha Condor Recycling team colours bike pictured here...
Fixed speed bikes - which do not have a freewheel hub on the rear - started life on the velodrome track, where neither coasting nor brakes are required, and where the extra weight of cassette, freewheel, brakes, cable and levers are all destined to slow down a rider. On a fixed speed bike if the wheels are moving then so are your legs, and you brake by slowing your legs (no mean feat if you're going fast!). They have since become very popular with urban cycle couriers where their speed and reduced maintenance costs are beneficial, and where the simplicity and 'coolness' of the bikes plays an even bigger part.A fixed-speed bike is about as basic as you can get - like a child's trike only faster.
Single-speed bikes on the other hand are a hybrid: a single gear (no cassette) on the rear, no derailleur and only a single chain wheel on the front, but a rear hub with a freewheel so you can coast along without your legs having to keep pace with the back wheel.
Not all of fixies looked as beautiful as the Rapha Condor Recycling team colours bike pictured here...
Fixed speed bikes - which do not have a freewheel hub on the rear - started life on the velodrome track, where neither coasting nor brakes are required, and where the extra weight of cassette, freewheel, brakes, cable and levers are all destined to slow down a rider. On a fixed speed bike if the wheels are moving then so are your legs, and you brake by slowing your legs (no mean feat if you're going fast!). They have since become very popular with urban cycle couriers where their speed and reduced maintenance costs are beneficial, and where the simplicity and 'coolness' of the bikes plays an even bigger part.A fixed-speed bike is about as basic as you can get - like a child's trike only faster.
Single-speed bikes on the other hand are a hybrid: a single gear (no cassette) on the rear, no derailleur and only a single chain wheel on the front, but a rear hub with a freewheel so you can coast along without your legs having to keep pace with the back wheel.
Continue reading Fixies galore at Cycle 2008.
I'm very excited today because I am off to London to visit the 2008 bicycle show at Earl's Court. I'm hoping to see tons of exciting new bike kit, snaffle a few goodie bags, grab a bargain and maybe even see a celebrity or two. And I definitely plan to rub myself up against the glorious clothes at the Rapha stand!
Sorry I've been quiet for a while (Emma)! I've so much to tell you all: Blenheim triathlon hell, triathlon heaven at my first Olympic distance in Windsor, and how my running recruits got on (hint: they did well), and much, much more.
But I have no time! I'm busy packing - or at least thinking about packing - to head off to Paris by bicycle. That's right, myself and 14 other fools will be cycling the roughly 350 miles from Eynsham to Paris starting on Friday. We're aiming to arrive in Gay Paris on Monday, and with Le Tour in full swing by then we're hoping for a good welcome as we roll into town in our Eynsham Road Runners cycling jerseys!
But I witter.. I must go now, but wanted to say à bientôt before I went. I will be trying to do some blogging or photo logging whilst I'm away, so you might hear more from me. At the very least I will do something with my Facebook profile. And I'm possibly going to be using Bliin to track my progress (on my brand new Nokia phone - that I won at the Windsor triathlon! But that's another story, which I don't have time for!), so you may or may not be able to see my current location on the trip by checking out my bliin.com homepage, and/or on the image below.
But I have no time! I'm busy packing - or at least thinking about packing - to head off to Paris by bicycle. That's right, myself and 14 other fools will be cycling the roughly 350 miles from Eynsham to Paris starting on Friday. We're aiming to arrive in Gay Paris on Monday, and with Le Tour in full swing by then we're hoping for a good welcome as we roll into town in our Eynsham Road Runners cycling jerseys!
But I witter.. I must go now, but wanted to say à bientôt before I went. I will be trying to do some blogging or photo logging whilst I'm away, so you might hear more from me. At the very least I will do something with my Facebook profile. And I'm possibly going to be using Bliin to track my progress (on my brand new Nokia phone - that I won at the Windsor triathlon! But that's another story, which I don't have time for!), so you may or may not be able to see my current location on the trip by checking out my bliin.com homepage, and/or on the image below.
14th - 22nd June 2008 is National Bike Week. During the week, people will be encouraged to ditch the car or that pesky walking and get on a bike - possibly for the first time since childhood. This year organisers are promoting family-oriented cycling and there are literally thousands of great events to get families cycling together and enjoying the Great British Countryside (let's hope for good weather in the Great British "Summer"), and so there are rides for all ages and abilities.
If you want to know more, or want to take part, check out the website and find an event near you. Go on, get on your bike.
If you want to know more, or want to take part, check out the website and find an event near you. Go on, get on your bike.
Windsor triathlon on June 15th is an Olympic distance (1500m swim, 40km bike, 10km ride), which is longer than the sprints I've done before, so I'm a bit nervous. I've also been told it's quite hilly but I'm ignoring that for now! It's important to me that I know I can complete the distance, even if it's slowly, and doing a couple of 'trial' sprint triathlons before my first one in Newbury a couple of years ago was definitely a confidence booster.
So I've been working up to the full distance over the past few weeks, in the hope that I can do a couple of trial Olympic distance bike/runs before the event, and I'm almost there. I've increased my run distances significantly since September last year, and can now run about 12km before I completely fall apart. But I've really neglected my cycling and swimming. Swimming will have to wait for now, as today I did a brick session (bike and run), which this time I did as a 40km bike ride and a 5km run. The run was a bit slower than I hoped (27m), but after a 40km ride I can forgive myself. Brick sessions are great practice for the day because they teach your body how to cope with the bike/run transition, which I think is far and away the hardest part of the triathlon. So I'm pleased I completed the whole lot in about 1.5 hours, and probably could have run a bit further ifI hadn't gotten bored.
Next time:full bike and run distance, then the lake at Cassington opens up in a few weeks so I can get back into the swimming practice!
So I've been working up to the full distance over the past few weeks, in the hope that I can do a couple of trial Olympic distance bike/runs before the event, and I'm almost there. I've increased my run distances significantly since September last year, and can now run about 12km before I completely fall apart. But I've really neglected my cycling and swimming. Swimming will have to wait for now, as today I did a brick session (bike and run), which this time I did as a 40km bike ride and a 5km run. The run was a bit slower than I hoped (27m), but after a 40km ride I can forgive myself. Brick sessions are great practice for the day because they teach your body how to cope with the bike/run transition, which I think is far and away the hardest part of the triathlon. So I'm pleased I completed the whole lot in about 1.5 hours, and probably could have run a bit further ifI hadn't gotten bored.
Next time:full bike and run distance, then the lake at Cassington opens up in a few weeks so I can get back into the swimming practice!
I wrote last week about how drivers and cyclists should all try to get along better. One of the points was that cyclists need to respect red lights, in the same way we expect drivers to.
At a recent unofficial Chicago bike race, a cyclist was killed whilst riding through a red light. The unfortunate driver who killed him now has to live their life knowing they've ended someone else's. This is a real tragedy and what annoys me more than anything is the stupidity of one of the organisers, who seems to think that it's the drivers, society's, the government's, or the fault of anyone other than the cyclist or the organisers.
"To blame the victim for dying such a tragic death I think is an injustice. And I think it's an injustice that our culture is so embedded into auto use and the convenience of autos that we are willing to let our friends and loved ones be killed," said Wilson, West Town Bikes.
Don't be a prick. Wear a helmet and respect red lights. Here's the full story
Edit: Apologies that I forgot to say that this story came to me via The Fredcast (sorry, Dave). If you aren't tuning in every week (or so), you're missing out on some of the best cycling news, reviews and commentary there is. Go and try it now.
At a recent unofficial Chicago bike race, a cyclist was killed whilst riding through a red light. The unfortunate driver who killed him now has to live their life knowing they've ended someone else's. This is a real tragedy and what annoys me more than anything is the stupidity of one of the organisers, who seems to think that it's the drivers, society's, the government's, or the fault of anyone other than the cyclist or the organisers.
"To blame the victim for dying such a tragic death I think is an injustice. And I think it's an injustice that our culture is so embedded into auto use and the convenience of autos that we are willing to let our friends and loved ones be killed," said Wilson, West Town Bikes.
Don't be a prick. Wear a helmet and respect red lights. Here's the full story
Edit: Apologies that I forgot to say that this story came to me via The Fredcast (sorry, Dave). If you aren't tuning in every week (or so), you're missing out on some of the best cycling news, reviews and commentary there is. Go and try it now.
Results just in (thanks Lesley). I came 17th out of 31 and only 3 places behind Dan, which I'm pleased with. I also managed to keep about the same pace in Run 2 as I did in Run 1, which
is remarkable considering how hard it felt, so I'm very pleased with that.
This was a 3 mile/12 mile/1.5 mile duathlon, and my first duathlon ever:
Total time: 67.29
Run 1: 21:31
Bike : 34.17
Run 2: 10.46
This was a 3 mile/12 mile/1.5 mile duathlon, and my first duathlon ever:
Total time: 67.29
Run 1: 21:31
Bike : 34.17
Run 2: 10.46
I completed my first duathlon today (run-bike-run) with the Eynsham Road Runners. The email described the run as 'about 1 mile', so when I discovered it was 3 miles the first time round then 1.5 miles the second time I was a bit worried. But actually it went reasonably well, and I wasn't last (not even the last male!) My run training over the past few weeks has obviously paid off a bit, and the work I've been doing to improve my TT performance might also be helping.
The run route was 2 laps of Eynsham, then a flat 12 mile route out to Stanton Harcourt on the bike, then another lap of Eynsham. It was a perfect day for it with the sun out and little or no breeze.
The new bike felt good and I managed to pass many of the people that had gone dashing off on the run, and thankfully stayed ahead of most of them on the second run. Robin (the chap I'm doing the research study with) suggested when I did the initial 10 mile test with him that I change gear too often and that I should stick it on the big front chainring at the start, pick a reasonable gear at the back and then just aim to keep the cadence at about 85rpm. I tried that today and it felt right, giving me a good speed and a reasonable heart rate. I need to work on it a bit more though, as I ended the bike wondering whether I could have hammered it a bit harder.
Even though my bike legs felt good after 12 miles, my run legs suggested I had done quite enough already thankyou very much. It was really tough to get them moving and I felt as though I was barely plodding around the last mile of the course. It only lasted 10 minutes but it was bloody painful, and I can now see why Duathletes claim that their sport is harder than Triathlon.
The whole thing took 1:07:30 (ish - times to be confirmed...), which was 3 minutes slower than Dan, but he's a stronger runner than me so I'm quite happy with that. All in all a great new experience and a very fun day. A lovely cooked breakfast and some 'rehydration water' afterwards quickly flushed away any pain, too.
Oh, and I finally signed up as a member of the running club, so now I really have no excuses in future.
The run route was 2 laps of Eynsham, then a flat 12 mile route out to Stanton Harcourt on the bike, then another lap of Eynsham. It was a perfect day for it with the sun out and little or no breeze.
The new bike felt good and I managed to pass many of the people that had gone dashing off on the run, and thankfully stayed ahead of most of them on the second run. Robin (the chap I'm doing the research study with) suggested when I did the initial 10 mile test with him that I change gear too often and that I should stick it on the big front chainring at the start, pick a reasonable gear at the back and then just aim to keep the cadence at about 85rpm. I tried that today and it felt right, giving me a good speed and a reasonable heart rate. I need to work on it a bit more though, as I ended the bike wondering whether I could have hammered it a bit harder.
Even though my bike legs felt good after 12 miles, my run legs suggested I had done quite enough already thankyou very much. It was really tough to get them moving and I felt as though I was barely plodding around the last mile of the course. It only lasted 10 minutes but it was bloody painful, and I can now see why Duathletes claim that their sport is harder than Triathlon.
The whole thing took 1:07:30 (ish - times to be confirmed...), which was 3 minutes slower than Dan, but he's a stronger runner than me so I'm quite happy with that. All in all a great new experience and a very fun day. A lovely cooked breakfast and some 'rehydration water' afterwards quickly flushed away any pain, too.
Oh, and I finally signed up as a member of the running club, so now I really have no excuses in future.
I've just started working with a chap (Robin Akers) who is doing a research programme into explosive and/or resistance training and its effect on time trial performance. He's going to be working with a number of amateur triathletes to see whether certain training regimes will improve their power capabilities and performance more than others.
The programme will last for six weeks, and I'm not sure yet what it will entail for me, because it depends which training group Robin puts me into. I may even be in the control group where I don't need to do anything other than my normal training programme (here's hoping!)
To start with, he wanted to take a 'baseline' power measurement, so he can say how much (or little) I improve over the six weeks. This was mainly what appealed to me, because I've heard a lot recently about how power-based training can be more effective than that based solely on heart-rate and HR zones. Since I didn't have any idea what my power output was, I thought it would be good to find this out, and hopefully improve it.
He worked out my baseline power by measuring my output during a 10 mile indoor time trial, using a PowerTap hub which measures power, cadence and speed. The PowerTap reported that I averaged 205 watts over the 28 minutes of the TT. This compares very poorly with some of the other people he's measured so far (I will probably be the worst!), with the best so far coming in at sub-20 minutes and with an average power of over 300 watts. But, at least now I have something to improve on!
I've previously read that a good starting point is:
average power (watts) =~ 2.5-3 * body weight (kg)
So, at 76kg, that would give me an average power output of 190-228 watts.
Today I found another formula by Jim Martin of the University of Utah, which seems more precise. You can see the details here, but basically it's:
power (watts) = 60 * Body weight (lb.) /10k run time (minutes)
Again, for me, that would give
Oh, and if anyone wants to donate a PowerTap hub to my cause, you can buy me one here.
The programme will last for six weeks, and I'm not sure yet what it will entail for me, because it depends which training group Robin puts me into. I may even be in the control group where I don't need to do anything other than my normal training programme (here's hoping!)
To start with, he wanted to take a 'baseline' power measurement, so he can say how much (or little) I improve over the six weeks. This was mainly what appealed to me, because I've heard a lot recently about how power-based training can be more effective than that based solely on heart-rate and HR zones. Since I didn't have any idea what my power output was, I thought it would be good to find this out, and hopefully improve it.
He worked out my baseline power by measuring my output during a 10 mile indoor time trial, using a PowerTap hub which measures power, cadence and speed. The PowerTap reported that I averaged 205 watts over the 28 minutes of the TT. This compares very poorly with some of the other people he's measured so far (I will probably be the worst!), with the best so far coming in at sub-20 minutes and with an average power of over 300 watts. But, at least now I have something to improve on!
I've previously read that a good starting point is:
average power (watts) =~ 2.5-3 * body weight (kg)
So, at 76kg, that would give me an average power output of 190-228 watts.
Today I found another formula by Jim Martin of the University of Utah, which seems more precise. You can see the details here, but basically it's:
power (watts) = 60 * Body weight (lb.) /10k run time (minutes)
Again, for me, that would give
power (watts) = 60 *167.55 / 52 = 193.32So at 205 watts average, I'm about on the money. I've definitely got a lot to do, and as well as improving my power I also need to improve my technique (I'm very inconsistent with my cadence and gearing over the 10miles), but hopefully by doing this programme with Robin I will be able to focus a bit more on this aspect of my training and things will start to improve.
Oh, and if anyone wants to donate a PowerTap hub to my cause, you can buy me one here.
Matthew Parris wrote a 'joke' article in the times over Christmas. At the time I read it I thought it was a dumb article just aimed at inciting some comments and laughs at other people's expense. I'm now not so sure and am grateful for the cyclists and non-cyclists that took much more serious umbridge over it and responded. The Times has now issued a (small, discreet) apology, although Matthew Parris has yet to be decapitated.
Some of the comments are fantastic fun to read, and will either make you laugh or make your blood boil. Some of them also make you appreciate just how stupid people some Times readers really are (AK from Swindon, I'm looking at you).
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/comment/columnists/matthew_parris/article3097464.ece
Now you've read that and had a chuckle, try this one (mentioned in one of the comments)
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/europe/article1637173.ece
Some of the comments are fantastic fun to read, and will either make you laugh or make your blood boil. Some of them also make you appreciate just how stupid people some Times readers really are (AK from Swindon, I'm looking at you).
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/comment/columnists/matthew_parris/article3097464.ece
Now you've read that and had a chuckle, try this one (mentioned in one of the comments)
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/europe/article1637173.ece
